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AVON PARK — The South Florida State College Foundation, Inc. recently received a $50,000 donation as a capital campaign kickoff from the Drs. V & T Thakkar Foundation, Inc. at the Greater Sebring Chamber of Commerce luncheon.

In conjunction with the college’s year-long 50th anniversary celebration, a new initiative is underway to raise funds for the purpose of positioning the college to face the unknown challenges of the next half century. The $50,000 kickoff donation is just the beginning of a statewide effort to create a $10 million endowment fund intended to support technological advances in the coming years.

“Drs. Vinod and Tarlika Thakkar have a long-standing relationship with our college and for many years have been generous in supporting nursing education and other projects,” said Don Appelquist, executive director of the SFSC Foundation, Inc. “This lead gift, to initiate the Endowment Campaign, is just another example of the extraordinary philanthropic spirit of these wonderful friends of our college. We believe that this kind of lead gift will set the tone for our campaign and allow us to better address the future educational needs of our community.”

Launched this month, the $10 million capital campaign, call the Partnership Project, is the largest fundraising effort in the 50-year history of the college. All gifts to the foundation’s capital campaign are tax-deductible to the full extent allowed by law and pledges can be paid over as much as five years.

Founded in 1965, SFSC is a public, two-year college that provides a wide range of educational opportunities at campuses in DeSoto, Hardee and Highlands counties. The SFSC Foundation was established in 1984 as a nonprofit educational trust to provide expanded resources for the college’s growth and development. The foundation enhances the community’s awareness of the college, encourages, solicits and accepts gifts, receives bequests, and accounts for and manages cash and non-cash gifts donated to the foundation.